Trebles all round as shoppers go spend crazy

Some excellent news from the Sunday Express today. Shoppers are "throwing caution to the wind" and going on a £13 billion spending spree, likely to top last year's Christmas bonanza. It's nice to see something going right for a change (notice that I am breaking the habit of a lifetime and actually believing something in the Express - oh well, what the heck - we need cheering up).

SHOPPERS went on a recession-busting spending spree yesterday to lift the economic gloom.

Stores across the country took more than £1billion and sales figures in the run-up to Christmas now look set to top last year’s £13billion total.

Millions of families decided to take advantage of the reduction in VAT, lower interest rates and dramatic High Street price cuts to spend, spend spend. In London, two million shoppers flocked to the West End and shopping malls elsewhere reported frenetic trading.

With discounts of up to 50 per cent on offer, delighted customers were loading up with everything from electrical goods to clothing as if it were the January sales.

John Lamb, of the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said: “People are throwing caution to the wind this year. It’s been so miserable, they want to really enjoy Christmas. I have spoken to some retailers who have seen the biggest increase in the number of customers coming through the door for three years. People are thinking that what they might be saving on their mortgage should go towards having a great Christmas to cheer themselves up.The retailers are all competing with each other with massive price cuts, partly due to the reduction in VAT but also because they want to cash in on the shoppers’ extra cash.”